National Trust urges climate action over heritage threat

The National Trust has called on government to take action dealing with the risk that rising temperatures and extreme weather pose to the nation’s heritage sites.

In a report published on Monday (20 November) the National Trust called climate change "the single biggest threat" facing the historic homes, land and coastline in its custodianship.

Entitled A climate for change, the report’s findings suggest 70% of its heritage assets will be at “medium or high risk” of climate hazards by 2060.

The conservation charity has proposed introducing a Climate Resilience Act that sets targets to prepare for the risk posed by climate change, saying the issue demanded “urgent and unswerving attention”.

It also wants to see a statutory duty on all public bodies and more funding from government for landowners, heritage organisations and tourism groups to help them adapt and protect their buildings, coastlines and countryside.

Patrick Begg, the outdoors and natural resources director at the National Trust, said: “We’re at a point where we need to raise a flag. We’re living the change. There are some serious, serious impacts happening.”

A government spokesperson told the BBC it had a five-year national adaptation programme to increase the country's resilience to climate change risks, including those posed to heritage sites, coastline and countryside, and is committed to investing billions of pounds in broader climate change adaptation measures.